System and method for identifying b-roll conditions in live streams or live rendered content

ABSTRACT

A video stream management system includes a video controller that live renders video. Moreover, the video stream management system also includes a display that is communicatively coupled to the video controller and displays a primary video feed that includes the live rendered video. The video controller, the display, or a combination thereof, embeds a pixel pattern in the primary video feed. Additionally, the video feed management system monitors one or more displayed images on the display to identify an error in the primary video feed.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims priority from and the benefit of U.S.Provisional Application No. 62/699,739, entitled “SYSTEM AND METHOD FORIDENTIFYING B-ROLL CONDITIONS IN LIVE STREAMS OR LIVE RENDERED CONTENT,”filed Jul. 18, 2018, which is hereby incorporated by reference in itsentirety for all purposes.

BACKGROUND

The present disclosure relates generally to the field of amusementparks. Specifically, embodiments of the present disclosure relate totechniques to manage amusement park operations, including managing videostreams for rides or attractions.

In certain settings, such as amusement park settings, certain rides andother equipment have become increasingly interactive. Among otherthings, this means that certain aspects of rides and equipment may notnecessarily be scripted. Indeed, as such rides and guest activatedequipment become more dynamic, such as live rendered or game-centric, itbecomes increasingly difficult to identify when components of theattractions, such as displayed visuals on the attractions, are notdisplaying as intended. Assigning operators to monitor and/or resolveunexpected display issues may result in inaccurate and inefficient parkoperations. Additionally, this reliance may lead to situations where aguest experience is affected due to equipment malfunctions or failure.Accordingly, a need exists for techniques and systems that are able toidentify issues with displayed media, and take corrective action toaddress such issues.

SUMMARY

Certain embodiments commensurate in scope with the originally claimedsubject matter are summarized below. These embodiments are not intendedto limit the scope of the disclosure, but rather these embodiments areintended only to provide a brief summary of certain disclosedembodiments. Indeed, the present disclosure may encompass a variety offorms that may be similar to or different from the embodiments set forthbelow.

In one embodiment, a video stream management system includes a videocontroller that live renders video. The video stream management systemalso includes a display that is communicatively coupled to the videocontroller and displays a primary video feed that includes the liverendered video. The video controller, the display, or a combinationthereof, embeds a pixel pattern in the primary video feed. The videofeed management system monitors one or more displayed images on thedisplay to identify an error in the primary video feed.

In one embodiment, a method for managing a video feed includes embeddinga dynamic pixel pattern into frames of a live video feed. The dynamicpixel pattern includes a first pixel pattern associated with a firstframe and a second pixel pattern associated with a second frame, inwhich the first pixel pattern is different than the second pixelpattern. The method also includes displaying the live video feed havingthe dynamic pixel pattern using a display. Additionally, the methodincludes monitoring displayed images on the display. Moreover, themethod includes identifying an error in the live video feed in responseto determining that the monitored displayed images include displayedpixel patterns that do not match the embedded dynamic pixel pattern.Furthermore, the method includes switching from displaying the livevideo feed to displaying an alternative video feed in response toidentifying the presence of the error in the live video feed.

In one embodiment, video stream management system includes one or moresensors that detect a guest presence, a video stream controller, and adisplay communicatively coupled to the video stream controller. Thevideo stream controller live renders video based on the detected guestpresence to generate a primary video stream, and embeds a pixel patternin the primary video stream to generate a video stream. The displayreceives the video stream, displays the video stream to generatedisplayed images, monitors the displayed images on the display toidentify an error based on a comparison of the displayed images and thepixel pattern, and generates an error signal based on identifying theerror.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the presentdisclosure will become better understood when the following detaileddescription is read with reference to the accompanying drawings in whichlike characters represent like parts throughout the drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an amusement park ride including anattraction utilizing a video stream monitoring system, in accordancewith an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the video stream monitoring system used inthe attraction of FIG. 1, in accordance with an embodiment of thepresent disclosure;

FIG. 3 is a process flow diagram of a method for monitoring and sendingan alternative video stream to a display based on an unexpected displaydetected using the video stream monitoring system, in accordance with anembodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of frames of image data provided by aninteractive or live rendered video stream with an embedded dynamic pixelpattern, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of an example of an unexpected display onthe frames of FIG. 4, in accordance with an embodiment of the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of another example of an unexpecteddisplay on the frames of FIG. 4, in accordance with an embodiment of thepresent disclosure; and

FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram of a frame of image data provided by thealternative video stream, in accordance with an embodiment of thepresent disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

One or more specific embodiments of the present disclosure will bedescribed below. In an effort to provide a concise description of theseembodiments, all features of an actual implementation may not bedescribed in the specification. It should be appreciated that in thedevelopment of any such actual implementation, as in any engineering ordesign project, numerous implementation-specific decisions must be madeto achieve the developers' specific goals, such as compliance withsystem-related and business-related constraints, which may vary from oneimplementation to another. Moreover, it should be appreciated that sucha development effort might be complex and time consuming, but wouldnevertheless be a routine undertaking of design, fabrication, andmanufacture for those of ordinary skill having the benefit of thisdisclosure.

When introducing elements of various embodiments of the presentdisclosure, the articles “a,” “an,” and “the” are intended to mean thatthere are one or more of the elements. The terms “comprising,”“including,” and “having” are intended to be inclusive and mean thatthere may be additional elements other than the listed elements.Additionally, it should be understood that references to “oneembodiment” or “an embodiment” of the present disclosure are notintended to be interpreted as excluding the existence of additionalembodiments that also incorporate the recited features.

Amusement parks feature a wide variety of entertainment, such asamusement park rides, performance shows, and games. The different typesof entertainment may include interactive or live rendered features thatenhance a guest's experience at the amusement park. The interactivefeature may include rides or equipment that are activated based on thepresence of a guest. For example, a display used as part of anattraction environment may be interactive, such that elements or objectsdisplayed may become activated or triggered to change based on thedetected presence of the guest rather than operating on a timer and/oras a pre-recorded playback. The changes may include variations in thedisplayed video environment, including lighting, textures, animation,etc. However, the changes in the display may nonetheless retain someobjects or features that may be perceived as unchanged. Thus, it may bedifficult to observe when the interactive aspect of the video stream isno longer interactive since some features (e.g., background) may remainunchanged. Additionally or alternatively, the video stream display maybe live rendered, such that the video display changes are in “realtime.” The play back may be fast and perceived to be in real time. Itmay also be difficult to observe when the live rendered playback is nolonger live rendered (e.g., in the case of a frozen display).

External factors may cause the interactive and/or live rendered videostream to act in an unexpected manner, such that the interactivefeatures on the display are no longer interacting with the guest or liverendered images are no longer changing in real time. Thus, the videostream displayed may no longer provide seamless viewing for the guestson the ride. Ordinarily, operators may be tasked to monitor and resolvethe unexpected display behavior. However, relying on one attractionoperator to resolve the behavior may distract the operator from otherimportant tasks, such as managing guest throughput and ride dispatch.Further, monitoring in this manner may require multiple operators whenmultiple displays are present. Tasks such as resolving issues, providingresolution data, and reviewing of the video stream data by monitoringpersonnel, may result in unreasonable delay in ride dispatches andpossible ride downtime. Additionally, there may be inconsistent andinaccurate monitoring of the video stream by the various operators sinceidentifying the unexpected behavior may be difficult to determine in theinteractive or live video stream. Thus, manual video display monitoringmay be difficult and inefficient, resulting in poor guest viewing andinteractions, unnecessary wait time between ride dispatches, which mayfurther result in longer queues and decreased guest enjoyment of theamusement park.

It should be noted that although examples provided herein may bepresented generally in an amusement park and ride attraction context,such as using the present techniques to facilitate monitoring displaysprovided on rides or as part of attraction environments, the techniquesin this disclosure may be applied to other non-amusement park relatedconditions and/or contexts. Thus, the present examples should beunderstood to merely reflect a real-world example of a displaymonitoring system on rides to provide useful context for the discussion,and should not be viewed as limiting the applicability of the presentapproach. Instead, the present approach should be understood as beingapplicable to other situations in which videos are displayed.

With the present in mind, FIG. 1 is a schematic representation of anamusement park ride 100 that may include a video stream on a display102. For example, in the depicted embodiment, the amusement park ride100 may include one or more displays 102 along a ride path 104. The ride100 may be accessed via a guest queue 106, and the ride may beconsidered ready when a variety of conditions, including displayconditions, are met. The display conditions may be conditions that allowa seamless viewing experience on the one or more displays 102. As shown,a ride operator 110 may operate the ride, such that guests are signaledto enter a ride cart 112 (e.g., ride vehicle) when the operatordetermines that display conditions are met.

Display conditions may be satisfied when the interactive and/or liverendering features of a video stream are properly functioning, such thatfeatures of the video stream including environments, elements, oranimations are perceived in real time and/or triggered to respond to adetected guest presence or gestures. The detection of the guest presencemay include a variety of sensing mechanisms.

In one embodiment, and as depicted, a camera 114 or a series of cameras114 that may be installed along the ride 100, including along the ridepath 104, may detect guest presence and/or gestures. Additionally oralternatively, the cameras 114 may be integrated into the display 102.The cameras 114 may use a variety of detection mechanisms, including butnot limited to, facial recognition, skeletal tracking, body-heatrecognition, and so forth. The cameras 114 may also capture movements(e.g., gestures) of the guest and use those captured movements tosimulate live rendering or interaction with elements or animations shownon the display 102. The video stream shown on the display 102 may alsobe a live feed of the guest (captured by the camera 114), or a liverendered video that includes a representation of the guest.

In another embodiment, guest presence detection may be performed by oneor more sensors, such as radio frequency identification (RFID) tags 118incorporated into a ride cart 112 or a guest wearable device, or weightsensors 120 disposed along ride tracks 116. These sensors may be placedor positioned in areas based on where guest presence is expected (e.g.,on a seat in the ride cart 112). The RFID tags 118 may communicate withan electronic reader 119 incorporated on the ride 100, such as on theride tracks 116 or the ride cart 112 (e.g., inside, on the side, or onthe entryway of the ride cart 112), to indicate presence of the RFIDtags 118. Thus, an electronic reader 119 placed on the ride path 104(e.g., ride tracks 116 or the ride cart 112) may scan an RFID tag 118 ona ride cart 112 as the ride cart 112 passes over the electronic reader119. Additionally or alternatively, weight sensors 120 may be mounted onthe ride tracks 116 and may be used to indicate the presence of the ridecart 112 on the ride tracks 116 based on a predetermined weight. TheRFID tags 118 and/or weight sensors 120 detecting guest presence maytrigger a live rendering or interactive video on the display 102.Additionally, the sensors may trigger a guest presence indication to thecameras 114 to turn on the cameras or narrow the ride area scope ofwhere guests may be detected. Thus, the cameras 114 may be used alone orin conjunction with other detection mechanisms (e.g., RFID tags 118 orweight sensors 120) to detect track a guest.

Once a guest presence is identified and tracked, the display 102 maychange, such that objects on the display 102 may seemingly interact orreact to the guests. The animation or live stream rendering may reactaccording to the movement of the guest and position of the guestrelative to the display 102. In the illustrated embodiment, a clown isdepicted on the display 102. The depicted clown may react (e.g., juggle)in response to detecting the guest and/or their tracked movements. Thus,the clown video display may be a live stream video and/or interactivebased on guest movement. As previously mentioned, an interactive and/orlive stream video (e.g., the clown video) may stop interacting ordisplaying in real-time, and may rely on either a guest or an operator110 to detect the unexpected change in display. A video streammanagement system 150, in accordance with an embodiment of the presentdisclosure, may be used to automatically detect an unexpected displayand switch to an alternative video source to allow for a seamlessviewing experience.

With the foregoing in mind, the presently disclosed embodiments maydetermine when a video stream sent to a display 102 and/or the display102 itself is no longer displaying the expected image. That is, in someembodiments, the video stream management system 150 may use a videostream with an embedded pixel pattern to detect an unexpected displayand then switch to an alternative video stream to provide seamlessviewing for an optimal guest experience.

The configuration and function of the video stream management system 150may be better understood with reference to FIG. 2, which illustrates ablock diagram of a video stream management system 150 for monitoring andswitching video streams using techniques provided herein. The videostream management system 150 includes at least one camera 114, a videostream controller 152, a monitoring sub-system 154, and the display 102,which may represent one or multiple displays 102. Although some of thefollowing descriptions describe the camera 114, video stream controller152, monitoring sub-system 154, and display 102 as separate componentsof the video stream management system 150 indirectly coupled or directlycoupled via wires/cables, which represents a particular embodiment, itshould be noted that the methods and systems may be performed andimplemented using any suitable arrangement of components, such as allthe components integrated in one display 102. For example, themonitoring sub-system 154 may also be included in the video streamcontroller 152, and the video stream controller 152 may be integrated inthe display 102. Further, the display 102 may include the camera 114.Thus, in one embodiment, all the functions (e.g., detecting, monitoring,switching, etc.) may be provided by the single integrated display 102.The display 102 may include a plurality of pixels.

As illustrated, one or more cameras 114 may be coupled to the videostream controller 152. The cameras 114 may be used to track guests(e.g., detect guest presence and/or capture guest movement), such thatguest movement may be used for an interactive or live rendering videostream. Once guest presence or movement is detected and/or tracked, thecameras 114 may send the detection and/or tracking signals to the videostream controller 152. The video stream controller 152 may use thecamera signals to enable a video stream 156 to be sent to the display102. The video stream controller 152 may include a memory 158 forstoring instructions executable by a processor 160.

The processor 160 may include one or more processing devices, and thememory 158 may include one or more tangible, non-transitory,machine-readable media. By way of example, such machine-readable mediacan include RAM, ROM, EPROM, EEPROM, or optical disk storage, magneticdisk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other mediumwhich can be used to carry or store desired program code in the form ofmachine-executable instructions or data structures and which can beaccessed by the processor 160 or by other processor-based devices. Theprocessor 160 may include a processing core 162 to executemachine-executable instruction algorithms stored in the memory 158.

The stored algorithms may include algorithms to send video data streamsto the display 102, including an embedded pixel pattern 164, aninteractive video stream 166, a live rendered video stream 169, and/oran alternative video source 174, such as a pre-recorded video stream.The processor 160 may also include processor-side interfaces 170 forsoftware applications running on the processing core 162 to interactwith hardware components on the ride 100, such as the display 102 andcameras 114, associated with the processor 160.

The embedding of the pixel pattern 164 may include modification of thedata associated with a primary video stream 168 to generate the videostream 156 that is provided to the display 102. The primary video stream168, as provided herein, may refer to the video stream associated withan interactive video, such as the live rendered video stream 169 or theinteractive video stream 166. The primary video stream 168 is embeddedwith the embedded pixel pattern 164 by modifying image data of one ormore images (e.g., individual frames of the primary video stream) suchthat the modified one or more images, when displayed, display theembedded pixel pattern 164. In one embodiment, the image data of the oneor more images include information encoding the color for each pixelassociated with the embedded pixel pattern 164. Accordingly, whenmodified with the embedded pixel pattern 164, the one or more images ofthe video stream 156 display different colors for one or more pixelsrelative to the primary video stream 168. It should be understood thatthe images in the primary video stream may include certain pixels thatare already encoded to display the color associated with the embeddedpixel pattern 164. That is, the source image(s) may already be black ata certain pixel location that corresponds with a black pixel of theembedded pixel pattern 164. However, the embedded pixel pattern 164 maybe sufficiently complex and varied such that a source image isstatistically unlikely to exhibit the complete embedded pixel pattern164 without modification. Further, the embedded pixel pattern 164 may bedynamic and change from frame-to-frame, which further reduces alignmentof the original source image with the embedded pixel pattern 164. Thedynamic features of the embedded pixel pattern 164 may includetranslation of the embedded pixel pattern 164 to different pixellocations across successive frames, a change of color of all pixelsassociated with an embedded pixel pattern 164 in a subsequent frame,and/or different arrangements of pixels in the embedded pixel pattern164.

The video stream controller 152 may also include a switch 172 or seriesof switches coupled to the processor 160. Based on instructions executedfrom the processor 160, the switch 172 may be used to implementswitching data streams sent to the display 102. As depicted, and in someembodiments, the processor 160 may transmit a primary video stream 168,such as the live rendered video stream 169 or the interactive videostream 166, along with the embedded pixel pattern 164, as the videostream 156 over a cable (e.g., High-Definition Multimedia Interface(HDMI) cable) to the display 102. The embedded pixel pattern 164 may beembedded in the primary video stream 168 and may be used to detectunexpected display behavior.

In addition to providing the video stream 156 for the display 102, thevideo stream management system 150 may also operate to automaticallyresolve unexpected display behavior by switching video streams. Forexample, the video stream management system 150 may switch the displayedvideo stream 156 to the alternative video source 174, which may bestreamed to the display 102 concurrently. The switch 172 of the videostream controller 152 and/or a display processor 165 of the display 102may control which stream is displayed on the display 102 for the ride100. In the depicted embodiment, the display 102 configuration maydefault to the video stream 156 and may switch to the alternative videosource 174 based on additional instructions sent by the video streamcontroller 152 and processed by the display processor 165. Theadditional instructions may be sent and executed based on a displayerror detection by the monitoring sub-system 154 when an unexpecteddisplay behavior is detected.

In particular, the monitoring sub-system 154 may include error detectionlogic 176, a monitoring sub-system memory 180, and a monitoringsub-system processor 182. Algorithms may be used to identify errors onthe display 102, for example using error thresholds and patternidentification. The algorithms may be stored in the monitoringsub-system memory 180 and executed by the monitoring sub-systemprocessor 182.

A pixel comparator 178 of the error detection logic 176 may determine anunexpected display, as will be discussed in detail below. The pixelcomparator 178 may be used to compare the image pixels of the displayedvideo stream 156 as displayed on the display 102 to one or more pixelpatterns stored in the monitoring sub-system memory 180 and/or a pixelpattern sent via the embedded pixel pattern 164. The monitoringsub-system 154 may relay received display data 184 regarding pixel orpixel patterns to the video stream controller 152. The error detectionlogic 176 may generate an error signal 186 upon identification of anerror. The monitoring sub-system 154 may also send the error signal 186to the video stream controller 152 when the error detection logic 176detects unexpected display behavior. The unexpected display behavior maybe determined based on an expected pixel pattern stored in themonitoring sub-system memory 180 versus the pixel pattern displayed onthe display 102. In some embodiments, information about the embeddedpixel pattern 164 may only be accessible by authorized users. In suchembodiments, the embedded pixel pattern 164 may be encrypted or may beaccessible only with a key. A key stored in the sub-system memory 180for an authorized user may be used to decrypt or verify the embeddedpixel pattern 164 also stored in the monitoring sub-system memory 180 toplaintext, which may be used subsequently to identify errors (e.g.,unexpected display behavior). The key may be generated based onmetadata, a network connection, and/or a memory location (e.g.,sub-system memory 180). For example, if the video stream controller 152is connected to a particular network, such as an unauthorized orunrecognized network, the video stream controller 152 may not access theembedded pixel pattern 164 without inputting or loading the paired key(e.g., unique private key per network connection). As such, the videostream controller 152 may not be able to identify or compare currentlydisplayed pixels to the expected embedded pixel pattern 164 to identifyunexpected display behavior without using the key. Examples ofunexpected display behavior may include, but are not limited to, adialog box blocking at least part of a video frame sent by the videostream 156, a frozen video frame, a failure to display the video stream156 (e.g., black screen), and/or incorrect pixel illumination (e.g.,pixel color or brightness) at a particular pixel position on the display102. Additionally or alternatively, an error detection algorithm on thevideo stream controller 152 may be used determine an error or unexpecteddisplay behavior based on the received display data 184.

In an embodiment the comparator 178 operates to count pixel mismatchesper frame in the video stream 156 between the displayed image and theexpected pixel pattern for that frame. The threshold may be set to athreshold number of pixel mismatches, whereby a determination of a lowernumber of mismatches than the threshold is indicative of a correct videostream 156 and a higher number of pixel mismatches than the threshold isindicative of an error. For example, there may be a certain allowedtolerance of 1-2 pixel mismatches to account for malfunctioning pixels.In an embodiment, the comparator 178 may be set to require pixelmismatches above the threshold to be present in at least a certainnumber of frames before triggering an indication of error and,therefore, a switch to the alternative video source 174. Each individualframe or only a subset of the frames of the video stream 156 may includean embedded pixel pattern 164 (e.g., an expected pixel pattern). Thecomparator may associate a displayed image with an expected embeddedpixel pattern 164. That is, for dynamic embedded pixel patterns 164 inwhich the pixel pattern changes between frames of the video stream, theexpected embedded pixel pattern 164 for a displayed image of the videostream may be associated with a particular frame identifier, which maybe part of the metadata for the video stream 156. The display processor165 may, during displaying, provide the metadata with the frameidentifier to the error detection logic 176 so that the expected pixelpattern for that particular frame may be used by the comparator 178.

The detection of errors may occur at the device (e.g., the display 102)that receives the video stream 156. Any active rendering or interactivechanges to the video stream 156 may occur at the video stream controller152. However, in other embodiments, the video stream controller 152 andthe display 102 are provided as a unitary device. In an embodiment, thevideo stream 156 is formed from a series of successive image frames,whereby each image frame is displayed using a plurality of pixels of thedisplay 102. The pixel pattern (e.g., the embedded pixel pattern 164)may be formed from or incorporate only a subset of the total pixels usedin displaying images with the display 102. For example, the pixelpattern for each frame or image may involve less than 10%, 5%, 2%, or 1%of the available pixels on the display 102. In this manner, the pixelcomparator 178 of the error detection logic 176 at the receiving devicemay assess only a subset of the available pixels (e.g., only thosepixels associated with the expected pixel pattern) of the display 102,thus avoiding complex full image/video comparison operations for fasterand more efficient detection of errors within the video stream 156.

To illustrate examples of the error detection logic 176 of themonitoring sub-system 154 in detail, a process 200 for detecting anunexpected display and/or generating a response to the unexpecteddisplay is described in FIG. 3. Generally, the process 200 includesgenerating (process block 202) a primary video stream 168, embedding(process block 204) a pixel pattern 164 in the primary video stream 168,sending (process block 206) a video stream 156 that includes the primaryvideo stream 168 with the embedded pixel pattern 164 to the display 102,and assessing (process block 208) the displayed image(s) on the display102 to identify whether the expected pixel pattern is being displayedand evaluating whether (decision block 210) the displayed image includesthe expected pixel pattern within a predetermined threshold. If thepixel pattern identified in the displayed image is within the threshold,the display 102 continues (process block 212) to display the primaryvideo stream 168 with the embedded pixel pattern 164 as the video stream156, and if the pixel pattern is not within the threshold, then thedisplay 102 switches (process block 214) the video stream 156 to thealternative video source 174.

While the process 200 is described using acts in a specific sequence, itshould be understood that the described acts may be performed indifferent sequences than the sequence illustrated, and certain describedacts may be skipped or not performed altogether. In general, at leastsome of the steps of process 200 may be implemented at least in part bythe video stream management system 150. Specifically, these steps may beimplemented at least in part by the processor 160 of the video streamcontroller 152 or the monitoring sub-system processor 182 of themonitoring sub-system 154 that executes instructions stored in atangible, non-transitory, computer-readable medium, such as themonitoring sub-system memory 180. In alternative or additionalembodiments, at least some steps of the process 200 may be implementedby any other suitable components or control logic, and the like.

Thus, in some embodiments, the video stream controller 152 may generate(process block 202) a primary video stream 168. As previously discussed,the primary video stream 168 may include any video data stream, such asthe interactive video stream 166, the live rendered video stream 169,and/or the alternative video source 174, such as a pre-recorded videobitstream. The primary video stream 168 may be predetermined by a useror an operator 110. The video stream type used may be based on the ride100 and or targeted guests. For example, the ride type of the ride 100of FIG. 1 may include a clown theme and may be targeted at youngerguests, and thus, the primary video stream 168 may include theinteractive video stream 166 to allow a clown to react to guestgestures.

In some embodiments, the video stream controller 152 may embed a pixelpattern as the embedded pixel pattern 164 along with the primary videostream 168 to create the video stream 156 (process block 204). Theembedded pixel pattern 164 may be a data stream that may cause a pixelor an array of pixels of the display 102 to emit a particular color orabsence of color. In some embodiments, the pixel pattern may be dynamic,such that the color at a particular pixel of the display 102 may changewith each frame of image displayed. In other embodiments, the pixelpattern may be static and remain unchanged between the frames.

After the video stream controller 152 has embedded the primary videostream 168 with the embedded pixel pattern 164, it may send (processblock 206) the data streams as one video stream 156 to the display 102.Since the pixel pattern is embedded within the video stream (e.g.,within one or more individual frames of the primary video stream 168)156, the pixel pattern may be designed such that it is not visible ordetectable by a human eye. In this manner, the pixel pattern is onlydetectable by the video stream management system 150 and may allow aguest to continue enjoying a seamless viewing experience on the ride100.

Once the primary video stream 168 with the embedded pixel pattern 164 issent to the display 102, the monitoring sub-system 154 may determine(process block 208) the pixel pattern being displayed on the display102. To illustrate the determination of expected pixel pattern anddisplayed image for error detection, FIGS. 4-6 show frames of image datadisplayed 102 with the embedded pixel pattern 164. Moreover, althoughsome of the following descriptions describe a pixel pattern shown withthe displayed image data, which may be described to facilitate anexplanation of error detection using pixels, it should be noted that themethods and systems performed and implemented may utilize a hidden pixelpattern that is not detectable by the human eye. That is, the embeddedpixel pattern 164 is designed to allow detection by the video streammanagement system 150 and its components but not by guests.

As illustrated, FIG. 4 depicts a first frame 220 (Frame 1) and a secondframe 222 (Frame 2) of image data displaying interactive and/or liverendered image data with a dynamic embedded pixel pattern 224 (e.g.,pixel pattern 164) on the display 102. The pixel pattern 224 may includeat least one pixel displayed along with each of the frames 220 and 222of image data on the display 102. The first frame 220 and the secondframe 222 of image data may display a live rendered image, illustratedhere by way of example as a clown, such that the video stream provides aclown perceived by a guest to be moving in real time. As shown, thepixel pattern 224 may include black or colored light emitted by pixelson or around elements (e.g., clown) of the image. For example, a pixelof the display 102 may be expected to emit black light (e.g., absence oflight), which may be described as a black pixel 226 herein. In thedepicted embodiment, a black pixel 226 may be expected on the bottomcorner of the display 102 in the first frame 220.

However, in the subsequent frame of image data, the second frame 222,the clown may have changed his action and the pixel pattern 224 may havealso changed. As depicted in the second frame 222, the black pixel 226may be expected to appear on the top right corner of the display 102. Itshould be understood that the illustrated pixels (e.g., black pixels 226and/or white pixels 227) are shown as relatively large within thedisplay 102 by way of example. However, each pixel may be sized tocorrespond to the pixel size of the display 102, which is a function ofthe display resolution. Further, the illustrated pixels of the pixelpattern 224 may also include groups of contiguous pixels forming largershapes or patterns. Still further, while the illustrated pixel pattern224 is formed from black pixels 226 and white pixels 227, other colorcombinations are also contemplated. Still further, the pixel pattern 224may be selected to be generally not visible to the viewer. In oneexample, the pixel pattern may be distributed about sections of theframes 220, 222 that are associated with background images. In anembodiment, the pixel pattern 224 is formed only from noncontiguouspixels to render the pixel pattern 224 less discernible to the viewer.In an embodiment, individual pixels of the pixel pattern 224 areselected to be a different color from every surrounding pixel in theexpected image of the frames 220, 222. In an embodiment, an individualpixel of the pixel pattern is separated from other pixels in the pixelpattern 224 by at least 2, 3, 5, or 10 other pixels.

The display 102 may exhibit an unexpected pixel pattern, indicating anunexpected display. To illustrate, FIG. 5 depicts an unexpected pixelpattern 225 on an erroneous first frame′ 228 (Frame 1′). Although theerroneous first frame′ 228 displays the correct expected frame image,such as the image of first frame 220, the expected black pixel 226 ofthe pixel pattern 224 fails to appear, indicated as incorrect pixel 229.In other embodiments, the unexpected pixel pattern 225 may include, butis not limited to, one or more pixels that appear as a different colorand/or change locations on the display 102. In some implementations,such a change in pixel locations or color may be caused by an error inthe video rendering that may not be visible on the overall displayedimage itself. The error may be caused by digital media errors in thevideo stream 156 that may otherwise go undetected and result in falsepositives determined by other monitoring mechanisms, such as the limiteddetection of a video output to the display 102 via hardware/cables orphysical observations by operators 110 or guests. Thus, the embeddedpixel pattern 164 may allow detection of internal errors and earlydetection that may otherwise rely on external data and/or hardware.

Additionally or alternatively, an unexpected display may also include anerror on the displayed image itself. For example, if the rendered imagefails to change or is frozen from one image frame to the next, theexpected light emission at a pixel location may not appear on thedisplay 102. Moreover, additional images on the display 102, such as adialog box or another user prompt, may cause the expected light emissionat a pixel location to not appear on the display 102.

To illustrate, FIG. 6 illustrates an erroneous second frame′ 230 (Frame2′), which displays the expected image and expected pixel pattern 224 ofthe second frame 222, but with an error dialog box 231 waiting for userinput. The dialog box 231 may appear as a result of a change ortemporary loss of video output, etc. Due to the dialog box 231, theexpected black pixel 226 of the expected pixel pattern 224 may notappear in the expected location, and thus, indicate that the imagedisplayed on the display 102 may be an unexpected error. Therefore,determining the pixel pattern 224 displayed may detect an unexpecteddisplay error. In an embodiment, by distributing the pixel pattern 224about a variety of locations of the display 102 via a dynamic pixelpattern and/or a static pixel pattern positioned to be within allquadrants of the display 102, detected errors may be characterized. Forexample, a display failure at a particular pixel location and that isconfined to a single location while the rest of the display is undamagedmay present differently than a video freeze error that effects thedisplay more globally. That is, a single pixel failure may not beassociated with an error in the video stream 156 but rather a hardwareerror at the display 102. Accordingly, such an error may not trigger theswitch to the alternative video source 174. In another example, an errorassociated with a pop-up error window may be associated with a pixelmismatch in a predictable area of the display 102.

Returning to the process 200 of FIG. 3, the error detection logic 176 ofthe monitoring sub-system 154 may determine whether (decision block 210)the displayed pixel pattern 224 is within a predetermined threshold(e.g., pixel mismatches) of the expected dynamic embedded pixel pattern164. The error detection logic 176 may calculate this determinationusing algorithms previously discussed (e.g., error threshold and patternthreshold algorithms). The algorithms may analyze the received data(e.g., the image data and pixel pattern displayed) from the display 102and compare it to a predetermined threshold that may be set by a user oran operator 110. Thus, the error threshold for pixel location or coloremitted may be set such that it does not interfere with the seamlessviewing experience for a guest on the ride 100. The monitoringsub-system 154 may relay the display data 184 and/or an error signal 186to the video stream controller 152. Additionally or alternatively, thevideo stream controller 152 may determine if the relayed display data184 is within the predetermined threshold of the expected embedded pixelpattern 164 using algorithms stored in the memory 158 of the videostream controller 152.

Upon determination that the displayed pixel pattern is within thethreshold of the expected embedded pixel pattern 164, the video streamcontroller 152 may continue sending (process block 212) the video stream156 to the display 102. Thus, the video stream 156 may continue sendingthe primary video stream 168 with the embedded pixel pattern 164.

On the other hand, if the displayed pixel pattern is not within thethreshold of the expected embedded pixel pattern 164, resulting in avideo stream error (a “B-Roll” condition) determination, the videostream controller 152 may use switch 172 to switch (process block 214)from the video stream 156 to the alternative video source 174. Toillustrate, FIG. 7 depicts a third frame 232 (Frame 3), which displays aframe of the alternative video source 174. As shown, the third frame 232of the alternative video source 174 may include a non-interactive image,such as image data of a pre-recorded B-roll video. The pre-recordedvideo roll may not be interactive or live rendered, and thus, may not beembedded with a pixel pattern 164 to detect errors that may otherwise bedifficult to detect with interactive or live rendered video streams.Additionally or alternatively, the alternative video source 174 may be afull backup of the original video stream 156 that was displaying priorto the detection of the unexpected display. For example, the full backupmay include a redundant system for generating the video stream 156 thatincludes the primary video stream 168 along with the embedded pixelpattern 164. Additionally or alternatively, the alternative video source174 may include a different interactive or live rendered video streamalong with an embedded pixel pattern 164. The alternative video source174 option may be determined based on the most suitable source forproviding a seamless viewing experience for guests on the ride 100.

The alternative video source 174 may be switched within a quick responsetime frame such that there is minimal delay associated with theswitching of streams. To provide a quick switching mechanism, thealternative video source 174 and the video stream 156 may both bestreams that are be sent to the display 102 concurrently. However, thedisplay 102 may be instructed to change its image output based oninstructions received via the video stream controller 152 upon errordetection or an unexpected display. In an embodiment, the alternativevideo source may be stored locally at the display 102. In this manner,the switching may not be observed or noticeable by guests, and thus,continue providing a seamless viewing experience.

While only certain features of the disclosure have been illustrated anddescribed herein, many modifications and changes will occur to thoseskilled in the art. It is, therefore, to be understood that the appendedclaims are intended to cover all such modifications and changes as fallwithin the true spirit of the disclosure. It should be appreciated thatany of the features illustrated or described with respect to the figuresdiscussed above may be combined in any suitable manner.

The techniques presented and claimed herein are referenced and appliedto material objects and concrete examples of a practical nature thatdemonstrably improve the present technical field and, as such, are notabstract, intangible or purely theoretical. Further, if any claimsappended to the end of this specification contain one or more elementsdesignated as “means for [perform]ing [a function] . . . ” or “step for[perform]ing [a function] . . . ”, it is intended that such elements areto be interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f). However, for any claimscontaining elements designated in any other manner, it is intended thatsuch elements are not to be interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f).

1. A video stream management system, comprising: a video controllerconfigured to live render video; and a display communicatively coupledto the video controller and configured to display a primary video streamcomprising the live rendered video, wherein the video controller, thedisplay, or a combination thereof, is configured to embed a pixelpattern in the primary video feed, and wherein the video streammanagement system is configured to monitor one or more displayed imageson the display to identify an error in the primary video feed.
 2. Thesystem of claim 1, wherein the display is communicatively coupled to asource of an alternative video feed, and the display is configured toswitch to displaying the alternative video feed in response toidentifying the error in the primary video feed.
 3. The system of claim2, wherein the primary video feed comprises an interactive video streamand the alternative video feed comprises a non-interactive video stream.4. The system of claim 1, wherein the error is based on an identifiedmismatch between the embedded pixel pattern and an image of the one ormore displayed images on the display.
 5. The system of claim 1, wherein,when the embedded pixel pattern is identified in the one or more imagesdisplayed on the display, no error is detected by the video streammanagement system.
 6. The system of claim 1, wherein the embedded pixelpattern is associated with a subset of a total number of pixels of theone or more images on the display.
 7. The system of claim 1, wherein theerror is based on a predetermined threshold of pixel mismatches in anexpected pixel pattern and the one or more displayed images on thedisplay.
 8. The system of claim 1, wherein the embedded pixel pattern isdynamic and changes between the one more displayed images on the displayforming successive frames of primary the video feed.
 9. The system ofclaim 1, wherein the embedded pixel pattern is static between images ofthe one more images on the display forming successive frames of theprimary video feed.
 10. A method of managing a video feed, comprising:embedding a dynamic pixel pattern into frames of a live video feed,wherein the dynamic pixel pattern comprises a first pixel patternassociated with a first frame and a second pixel pattern associated witha second frame, wherein the first pixel pattern is different than thesecond pixel pattern; displaying the live video feed having the dynamicpixel pattern using a display; monitoring displayed images on thedisplay; identifying an error in the live video feed in response todetermining that the monitored displayed images comprise displayed pixelpatterns that do not match the embedded dynamic pixel pattern; andswitching from displaying the live video feed to displaying analternative video feed in response to identifying presence of the errorin the live video feed.
 11. The method of claim 10, wherein thealternative video feed comprises a full backup of the live video feedand the embedded dynamic pixel pattern, a new video feed different thanthe live video feed, or a combination thereof.
 12. The method of claim10, wherein the live video feed embedded with the dynamic pixel patternand the alternative video feed are provided to the display concurrently.13. The method of claim 10, wherein the first frame and the second frameare embedded in successive frames of the live video feed.
 14. The methodof claim 10, wherein the monitoring comprises assessing an individualframe to identify a pixel pattern of the embedded dynamic pixel patternassociated with the individual frame.
 15. The method of claim 10,wherein information about the embedded dynamic pixel pattern isencrypted and accessible via a key.
 16. A video stream managementsystem, comprising: one or more sensors configured to detect a guestpresence; a video stream controller configured to: live render videobased on the detected guest presence to generate a primary video stream;embed a pixel pattern in the primary video stream to generate a videostream; and a display communicatively coupled to the video streamcontroller and configured to: receive the video stream; display thevideo stream to generate displayed images; monitor the displayed imageson the display to identify an error based on a comparison of thedisplayed images and the pixel pattern; and generate an error signalbased on identifying the error.
 17. The system of claim 16, wherein theerror comprises the displayed images missing or having a mismatch withone or more pixels of the pixel pattern, having one or more differentcolor pixels relative to the pixel pattern, or a different location ofone or more pixels of pixel pattern.
 18. The system of claim 16, whereinthe video stream management system causes display of an alternativevideo based on the error signal.
 19. The system of claim 18, wherein thealternative video comprises a pre-recorded video.
 20. The system ofclaim 16, wherein the pixel pattern comprises a dynamic pixel pattern.